I love taking pictures...of anything really. right now I only have a point and shoot (Canon SD1100 IS) but I'm looking to get an SLR and learn about photo editing. I figured a forum would be a good place to start (in addition to online info/tutorials).

Welcome Sarah. You can do great things with a high quality P&S such as that Canon. Especially with optical image stabilization. My recommendation for your next three purchases:

- Two tripods, a tabletop one, and a full size one. You can get both of them for less than $100, and these will serve you well on your SLR too.

- A good book on photography, explaining the relationship between ISO/sensitivity, shutter speeds, apertures, depth of field, and composition.

These three things will do a lot more for your photography, and a lot more quickly, than the purchase of a new camera.

Last time I went to Europe, I brought my Canon SD600 Elph. Just like yours, but older. 6 MP, no image stabilizer. I finally figured out that what I needed was to leave the ISO set to 80 and use a tripod so that the shutter speeds didn't matter. The pictures are razor sharp, and are as good as those from my SLR set to ISO 200.

When you get the point where you're asking about which SLR to get, keep your mind open to brands other than Canon & Nikon. Pentax, Samsung, and Sony also make really nice SLRs that are often overlooked. I shoot with a Pentax myself, and the kit lenses are much nicer than those of Canon & Nikon. The image stabilizer is built into the body, so I don't have to buy it again with each lens.